Idiom of the Week: Break the Ice

Host: “Thanks for coming! Let me introduce you. This is Ida. Ida, this is Jeff. I’ll go get the drinks.” Ida: “…” Jeff: “…” Ida: “Well, someone has to break the ice. So, how about that weather?” Breaking the ice means starting a conversation. If no one breaks the ice,...

Word of the Week: Married

July is a popular month for weddings. What happens at a wedding? Someone gets married! Afterward, they are married. If you want to date an adult, first you must find out if he or she is married or single. 7月は結婚式に人気の月です。結婚式では何が起こりますか?誰かが結婚するのです(gets...

Phrase of the Week: He stood me up.

Paul: “How was your date with George?” Cynthia: “I can’t believe it. He stood me up! I waited for hours.” Paul: “That’s terrible!” If you make a promise to meet someone somewhere and then never show up at the meeting spot, you have stood the person up. This is a mean...

TOEIC Practice Question of the Week

I want you to _______ the two departments and get this done efficiently. Fill in the blank. A. cooperate B. check C. compound D. coordinate AとBは、「with」が入っていたらOKです。「Cooperate with~」は「~と協力する」で「check with~」は「~にきいて確かめる」です。「With」なしで使えるのはDの「coordinate」です。 Do more TOEIC...

Trivia of the Week: Sunburns and Suntans

Why do people like to lie in the sun at the beach? Some people do it to get a tan. They like the brown color that the sun gives to their skin. But what happens if you get too much sun? Then your skin turns red and painful. Then you are not tanned, but sunburned!...